The Living Spell - for genasi fighters [edited]

Isida Kep'Tukari

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Thanks to ElijahBenedict and dire hamster of Monte Cook's boards for quality control.

[edit] - Massive update, clarified Living Spell spell form abilities, also changed Planar Magic and Spell Attack II.

Lillian growled in frustration as another group of gnolls entered the clearing. The bloody things simply wouldn’t go away; this had to be the fourth wave of them.

“We’re not going to be able to take down all of them!” Hel’vok cried to the remaining soldiers hold the pass. The captain bitterly regretted not taking along one of the mercenary company wizards, but he had been so confident that his squad could take on a few gnolls. But a few gnolls does not mean a few dozen gnolls, and too many had already fallen. Ear-piercing hyena laughter grated on the psyche and their resolve.

Lillian heard the despair in the captain’s voice. But despair could easily be fixed, now that the gnolls had seen fit to finally group themselves together in order to divine Hel’vok’s remaining ranks. Lillian began to run straight for the gnolls, ignoring her friend’s pleas and Hel’vok’s orders to return. She launched herself in the air, a feat thought impossible by all the on-lookers, as Lillian was wearing full plate armor. She tucked herself into a tiny ball… and seemed to get tinier and tinier by the minute. In a few seconds, there was nothing but a small bead of light. The bean zipped into the midst of the tightly-packed gnolls, and exploded in a fierce flower of fiery fury.

Hel’vok and the others were not quite as stunned the few remaining flabbergasted gnolls, and easily managed to mop up the rest of them. Hel’vok found Lillian in the midst of the charred bodies, a few decapitated gnolls being mute testament to her skill against the survivors of the blast. She saluted with her bloody sword as her captain came near. He shook his head in admiration.

“Where did you learn to do that?” he asked finally.

“Oh, I learned it from my great, great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather,” Lillian said, removing her helm from her flame-colored hair.

“And he was still alive to teach you such tricks?” Hel’vok demanded to know. Lillian wiped the gnoll blood from her deep red skin before answering.

“Oh yes, he is a fire elemental.”


The Living Spell

Living Spells are those genasi that have been fascinated by magic, but lack the innate talent or tedious skill needed to weild it. As a consequence, they decide to bring a little magic into their lives anyway they can. They learn fighting styles to cause as much damage as their favorite spells, but some learn a little bit more.

By tapping into their planar heritage, genasi can channel enough elemental energy into their bodies to literally become it. By combining this power with their own knowledge of spellcraft, they can literally become a kind of spell. Their ties to the elemental planes become stronger, allowing them to both use and dismiss elemental energies in a fashion. Finally, they are able to combine their newfound "spell form" abilities with their own fighting techniques, resulting in devistating attacks which few can fully protect themselves from.

Hit Dice – d8

Requirement
In order to qualify to become a Living Spell, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Skills: Knowledge (planes) – 4 ranks, Knowledge (arcan-a) – 4 ranks, Spellcraft – 4 ranks.
BAB: +6
Feats: Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack, Whirlwind Attack, Quickdraw.
Race: Genasi, para-genasi, quasi-genasi, or half-elemental.
Special: Must have peacefully met with an elemental identical to their heritage in order to learn the secrets of the Living Spell (at least 24 hours is needed to help the character unlock the power within themselves).

Class Skills
A Living Spell’s class skills (and key ability for each skill) are Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (arcan-a) (Int), Knowledge (planes) (Int), Ride (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), and Swim (Str).

Skill Points per Level: 2 + Int mod.

Lvl...BAB...Fort..Ref..Will...Special
1.....+1....+0....+0...+2.....Living Spell: Arrow
2.....+2....+0....+0...+3......Planar Magic Weapon I
3.....+3....+1....+1...+3...... Living Spell: Sphere
4.....+4....+1....+1...+4......Spell Attack I
5.....+5....+1....+1...+4...... Living Spell: Cone
6.....+6....+2....+2...+5...... Planar Magic II
7.....+7....+2....+2...+5......Spell Attack II
8.....+8....+2....+2...+6...... Living Spell: Burst
9.....+9....+3....+3...+6...... Planar Magic III
10...+10..+3....+3...+7...... Living Spell: Wall

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the Living Spell prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: The Living Spell gains no additional weapon or armor proficiencies.

Living Spell: The Living Spell can literally become a spell. Their body and all equipment transforms into an energy type determined by their planar heritage. They learn to take different forms to do different types of spell effects as they progress in the class. Below are all the different types of genasi and the type of energy they do.

Air – electricity
Ash – cold
Dust – heat, less hit dice (see individual descriptions), chance of blinding and choking (Fort save 10 + ½ Living Spell levels + Int mod to avoid being blinded for 1d4 rounds, same DC Fort save to avoid choking for one round, if save fails, treat as being stunned.)
Earth – impact
Fire – fire
Ice – half cold and half impact
Lightning – half electricity and half sonic
Magma – half heat and half impact
Mineral – half impact and half slashing
Negatai – negative energy
Ooze – acid
Positai – positive energy (excellent for undead)
Radiance – heat (fire), less hit dice (see individual descriptions), chance of being blinded (Fort save 10 + Living Spell level + Int mod to avoid being blinded for 2d4 rounds).
Salt – dehydration
Smoke – heat (fire), less hit dice (see individual descriptions), chance of choking (Fort save 10 + Living Spell level + Int mod to avoid choking for 1d4 +1 rounds, treat as being stunned).
Steam – heat (fire)
Water – cold damage
Vacuum – straight damage, bypasses damage reduction*.
· Damage from vacuum genasi is like the damage from a sphere of annihilation, so DR doesn’t work on it.

The fire, earth, water, and air genasi can be found in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting. The dust, ice, magma, ooze, smoke, and steam para-genasi can be found in Dragon #297 (the epic issue). Unofficial conversions of the para-genasi, as well as 3e unofficial versions of the quasi-genasi can be found here: [link=users.erols.com/aburner/planescape/index.html]The Roaming Genasi Tavern[/link]

It takes no time to actually become a Living Spell, but it takes a standard action to discharge the effect, just like casting a spell. Becoming a Living Spell does not provoke an attack of opportunity. Once a Living Spell is in spell form, she cannot switch between forms. She must either successfully hit her target and discharge, fail repeatedly to hit someone and revert normally, or voluntarily revert before discharging (using up that form for the day) before she can change her form. Despite the range of the sample spells, a Living Spell in spell form can only travel so far in a round as she could normally (however, magic items or spells that increase her speed normally, if activated before the Living Spell takes spell form, allow her to travel faster). In order to discharge herself, she must hit her target with a melee touch attack, and she must target a single creature. If the Living Spell misses her target, she may stay in spell form for up to three rounds in an attempt to hit her target. After the third round, if she has not been able to hit her target, she reverts to her normal form in the nearest empty square, and her use of that form for the day is wasted. While in spell form, the Living Spell has the AC of her normal form and DR 10/+1. In the "seeking" mode (attempting to hit her target), she is considered a Diminuative object. In "active" Sphere and Wall mode, she is considered a Huge object. While moving through the battlefield, she suffers attacks of opportunity normally if she passes through someone else's square or other AoO provoking situations. See individual descriptions for further information.

Once the Living Spell has discharged (and, if relevant, duration has expired), she appears in a square next to her target (determined randomly), or the nearest empty one if all the immediate ones are occupied. All saves for a Living Spell’s initial Living Spell attack are 10 + Living Spell level + Int mod. All attempts to dispel or counterspell a Living Spell are made against the same DC. If a Living Spell is counterspelled or dispelled, she reverts to her normal form in the nearest empty square, takes 2d6 points of damage and is stunned for one round. A Living Spell in spell form is dispelled at a DC of 11 + Living Spell level. Counterspells are addressed below. The type of save for each ability is indicated below. Dust, Radiance, Smoke genasi, and Positai have additional rules, read below. A Living Spell may talk while in spell form. A Living Spell can assume each spell form 1/day. All are supernatural abilities.

Arrow: In arrow form, a Living Spell works like a flame arrow (fiery bolts version). She does 4d6 points of damage, Reflex save for half. Dust, Radiance, and Smoke genasi do only 3d6 damage. Positai heal their victims of 4d6 points of damage. This can be counterspelled by flame arrow (regardless of the energy type of the Living Spell).

Sphere: In sphere form, a Living Spell can enclose an individual in a sphere that either keeps them in, or other being out. The sphere is 20 ft. in diameter. If turned outward, it causes 2d4 +1 point of damage per Living Spell level to creatures within 10 ft. If turned inward, it does the same amount of damage to the contents of the sphere, unless the victim stays perfectly still (the sphere is centered on the victim). If the victim moves, even to make gestures for a spell, he takes damage. The sphere lasts for 1/round per Living Spell level (and a Living Spell remains in spell form during this time). Positai heal their victims the same amount of damage. Dust, Radiance, and Smoke genasi only do 2d4 + 1 point of damage per 2 Living Spell levels. A Reflex save will half the damage of those caught by the radius of an outward-pointing sphere, as well as halving the initial damage of an inward-pointing sphere. As above, a Living Spell is considered Huge while in Sphere form. This can be counterspelled by Otiluke's resilient sphere (regardless of the energy type of the Living Spell).

Cone: With this effect, the initial victim is just in front of a 25 ft. wide, 25 ft. long cone. This causes 1d6 points of damage per Living Spell level. Positai heal their victims the same amount of damage. Dust, Radiance, and Smoke genasi do one less die of damage. A Reflex save halves the damage. This can be counterspelled by cone of cold (regardless of the energy type of the Living Spell).

Burst: With this effect, a Living Spell targets a single creature (as usual), then bursts outward in a 20 ft. radius (similar to, but not exactly like, a fireball). This does 1d6 points of damage per Living Spell level. A Reflex save halves the damage. Positai heal their victims the same amount of damage. Dust, Radiance, and Smoke genasi do one less die of damage. This can be counterspelled by fireball (regardless of the energy type of the Living Spell).

Wall: The Living Spell targets a single creature, and attempts to drop a wall of damage on top of them. This is popular when attacking whole lines of creatures, such as charging enemies. The wall is opaque, straight, 20 ft. long per Living Spell level, and 20 ft. high. When initially dropped, the victim (and all others in a straight line), take 10d6 points of damage. Positai heal their victims the same amount of damage. Dust, Radiance, and Smoke genasi do one less die of damage. A Reflex save halves the damage (assume the victims that made it went five feet to either side). Also, the wall lasts for 1 round/Living Spell level, and the Living Spell remains in spell form during this time. After the first round, if the Reflex save was not made, the victim may move out of the wall. Anyone approaching within 10 ft. of either side of the wall takes 2d4 +10 damage. Dust, Radiance, and Smoke genasi only do 2d4 + 5 point of damage. Positai heal the same amount of damage. As above, in Wall form a Living Spell is considered to be Huge. This can be counterspelled by wall of fire (regardless of the energy type of the Living Spell).

Planar Magic Weapon: A single chosen melee weapon of the Living Spell comes to reflect more of their planar heritage, and become of more use in battling planar creatures. Once the energy type is chosen, it cannot be changed. The weapon, once chosen to be imbued with planar magic, must be the subsequent recipient of all planar magic abilities. The weapon's abilities cannot be transfered to another weapon until the first weapon is destroyed.

I - A single chosen melee weapon a Living Spell uses becomes a flaming (fire), shocking (electricity), screaming (sonic), acidic (acid), frost (cold), positive energy (healing), negative energy (negative energy), concussion (extra bludgeoning), or cutting (extra slashing) weapon, dealing +1d6 of the appropriate type of damage with each hit. The type of energy that is activated by each type of genasi is listed below. The ability can be surpressed and reactivated at will.

Air – shock
Ash – frost
Dust – flaming
Earth – concussion (must be on a weapon that does bludgeoning damage)
Fire – flaming
Ice – frost
Lightning – shock
Magma – flaming
Mineral – cutting (must be on a weapon that does slashing damage)
Negatai – negative energy
Ooze – acidic
Positai – positive energy
Radiance – flaming
Salt – cutting (must be on a weapon that does slashing damage)
Smoke – flaming
Steam – flaming
Water – frost
Vacuum – screaming

II – The chosen weapon becomes a burst variety of the previous chosen damage type, dealing +1d10 points of damage on a critical hit. See flaming burst ability in DMG for more information.

III – The Living Spell can use the chosen weapon to cast banishment 1/week as a 10th level wizard.

Spell Attack – A Living Spell is able to lunge in with her weapons to follow up her spell form attacks.

I – Upon successfully completing a spell upon a victim using the Living Spell ability, the character can immediately make a single melee attack at her highest attack bonus.

II – As Spell Attack I, but now can use her Whirlwind Attack feat to attack all within five feet. This is only useable with the Burst, Arrow, or Cone spell form abilities.
 
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This is really neat. The only problem I have is that it is REALLY hard to qualify for. Fighters can do it at an ECL of 7th level IF they have an Int bonus. Other characters pretty much can't take it until an ECL of 13 and if you multiclass (as a fighter) you are talking at least an ECl of 8 or 9.

The abilities they get (which are really cool) don't really stack up with their character level.

For example:

A 7/8 water genassi fighter/living spell has an ECL of 16. IT can make itself a cold fire ball once per day doing 8d6 points of damage at a DC of 18 + Int.

So can most 8th level mages.

I would suggest lowereing the prerequisites so it can be taken earlier. Dump a feat or two, lower the BAB, and maybe decrease the skill points a little bit.

Just some suggestions.
 

Well - most 8th level wizards can't wear full plate, absorb 50 points of damage without breaking a sweat, and be death incarnate with a longsword. However, I may drop a few required skill ranks. I just want to get a few more comments to see how other people think. :)
 

Kind of quirky and weird, very 3E. I like it. I would drop the Knowledge, (Arcana) requirement, but the others fit too well.

The Feats on the other hand, don't seem to have much to do with the class, as does the BAB requirement. I would pu it at a +5, if you had one at all. For feats, I'd drop them all for Wep Focus, (ray or bolt), Wep Focus, (chosen weapon), Energy substitution, (apropriate element). Quick Draw might not be bad, or Eschew Material Component.


For taking damage on a Dispell, I'd make it equal to the opposing caster's check. Other than that, it looks like fun.
 

yes, very cool, but like everyone before me, I think the prereques are kind of strange. take out the knowledge arcana, and mabye lower some of the others, and change the feats, especially WW and spring attack, which have a lot of prerequs and not much to do with the class.

just my 2 cents.
 

Hmm... methinks I didn't so such a good job with the general class description.

Ok, imagine if you will, a genasi fighter, the fire genasi Lillian. She doesn't have the force of personality to be a sorcercer (racial Cha penalty, I swear 3/4s of the genasi have one), no musical talent (not a bard), and the wizard academy cost too much, though she's sure she could have made a good one (so she's not a wizard). However, she likes magic and studies it in between her sword practice (various knowledge arcana and spellcraft ranks).

Because she likes magic so much, she learns a fighting style to do as much damage as the kinds of flashy spells wizards use in combat. Swift as lightning and able to harm many opponents at once (hence the Whirlwind Attack feat chain and Quickdraw).

To further imitate the magical spells that she doesn't have the talent/learning for, she tried to tap into her planar heritage to give her the power (having learned about it, hence the knowledge planes ranks). She goes to her seven-times-great grandfather, the fire elemental that founded her line. After explaining her problem, 7x-great granddaddy shows her how to use her planar heritage to literally tranform her body into elemental energy.

Lillian takes that knowledge and combinds it with what she knows about spellcraft in order to accomplish something aside from random blasting (her spell forms). As a consequence of transforming herself into elemental energy, she gains a greater understanding of the nature of that energy and of the planar ties to the world (hence her planar magic abilities).

Finally, she learns to combine her spell forms with her fighting style in order to use both at once (spell attack abilities).

Do my prereqs make more sense, or am I still just being confusing?
 

Ray Silver said:
Do my prereqs make more sense, or am I still just being confusing?

I don't know if you're being confusing, but I'm still pretty unsure about the feat requirements. Also, I'd drop the BaB to +5. I think it would be wierd for a PrC like this to not require know (arcarna) and spell craft tho...
 

The prereqs make sense for the one person, but not the class as a whole. Turning yourself into a Fireball has more to do with Spellcraft than a paticular weapon skill. And since the combining of the two happens latter in the class, you don't need weapon feats to justify getting into the class.

Just an opinion, thou, the class itself is cool.
 


Ray Silver said:
Updated! Comments are always appreciated. :)


Considering that characters will be around 18th-19th level by the time they complete the PrC, perhaps they should pack more of a punch. While the abilities are nice, they don't compare to other classes (balance-wise) at that level (especally in 3.5e). You might consider uping the BAB to help compensate.
 

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